New Testament Church

B F & M – The Church

/ Tim A. / Leave a comment

I heard of a man who walked into the pastor’s office and began telling the pastor that he was a missionary for the “Invisible church”.  He was asking for support in his “Mission work”, to which the pastor of the local church responded, by giving him an invisible check.

Most Baptist believe in the authority of the local church.  The local church is visible congregation.  It has a visible congregation, with officers pastors and deacons, and members who serve the other duties of that congregation.

When you look at the epistles [letters] which Paul the apostle wrote, they were written to local churches.  The letters of Jesus Christ in the Revelation chapters two and three, is addressed to local congregations.  There is much more emphasis put on the local church than on the idea of an “Universal or invisible church”.  The Body of Christ functions in local churches.

The following is our Statement of Faith concerning the church:

“VI. The Church

A New Testament church of the Lord Jesus Christ is an autonomous local congregation of baptized believers, associated by covenant in the faith and fellowship of the gospel; observing the two ordinances of Christ, governed by His laws, exercising the gifts, rights, and privileges invested in them by His Word, and seeking to extend the gospel to the ends of the earth. Each congregation operates under the Lordship of Christ through democratic processes. In such a congregation each member is responsible and accountable to Christ as Lord. Its scriptural officers are pastors and deacons. While both men and women are gifted for service in the church, the office of pastor is limited to men as qualified by Scripture.

The New Testament speaks also of the church as the Body of Christ which includes all of the redeemed of all the ages, believers from every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation.

Matthew 16:15-19; 18:15-20; Acts 2:41-42,47; 5:11-14; 6:3-6; 13:1-3; 14:23,27; 15:1-30; 16:5; 20:28; Romans 1:7; 1 Corinthians 1:2; 3:16; 5:4-5; 7:17; 9:13-14; 12; Ephesians 1:22-23; 2:19-22; 3:8-11,21; 5:22-32; Philippians 1:1; Colossians 1:18; 1 Timothy 2:9-14; 3:1-15; 4:14; Hebrews 11:39-40; 1 Peter 5:1-4; Revelation 2-3; 21:2-3.”

As Baptists we do believe that the office of pastor is reserved for men.  There is plenty of Scriptural evidence for this belief.  In First Timothy 3:1-7 the qualifications of the elder/bishop/pastor is related directly to the male gender.  For instance; “A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife…”.  I have a friend who pointed out, “When a woman can be the husband of one wife, then I can accept her as a pastor”.   I believe he would have meant as long as she met the other qualifications.

The local church was established by the Lord Jesus.  Each local church is made up of born again, baptized believers in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.  Every member is regenerated by the Spirit of God, reborn in Christ Jesus, and baptized in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit and into the local church.

This will be addressed later: Baptism is by immersion, ie., putting under the water.

-T.A.

Baptists and Baptism

/ Tim A. / Leave a comment

Below, you will find some quotes taken from one who is now the First Vice President of the Southern Baptist Convention, and another from  a quote of a Regular Baptist who lived from 1788 – 1866.  These are and were devout Baptist preachers.

I received these from the Landmark Southern Baptist discussion group.  The parenthesis at the end of each quote is of the moderator of that group – Ben Stratton.

“I believe you have to have certain things in order to be a New Testament Church.    First of all you must preach, believe, adhere to as a congregation that salvation is by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone including security of the believer.  I had a mega-church pastor chide me because I said that this was a qualifier for a New Testament church.  He said you’re ruling out a whole bunch of people when you add that security of believer.  I said that’s ok.  They may be fine Christian people and they may be going to heaven and may have a great time when they get together but they’re not a New Testament church because a New Testament church teaches salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone including security of the believer.  (This) makes it a New Testament Church.   Doesn’t have to have Baptist over the door but it does have to have Bible in its doctrine.  So that means also baptism by immersion of believers only.  You can’t sprinkle or pour and be a New Testament Church.   I’m not talking about getting to heaven, I’m talking about being faithful to the Word of God.”  Jim Richards.

(The above quote is from a sermon Jim Richards preached in the chapel at the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas on November 01, 2006.  Richards is the executive director of the Southern Baptists of Texas state Convention {SBTC}.  Notice that Richards contends that eternal security and believer’s immersion are two of the requirements for a group to be a true New Testament Church.  This is one of the reasons that Baptists reject the immersions of these groups.)

“A considerable congregation had gathered, and I delivered as plain and pointed a discourse, and as definite as I could.  I then explained the circumstances which had led to that appointment, and that I was authorized by the Bethel Church, of which I was a member, and which was located in the district of Cape Girardeau, to give an invitation to any persons wishing to be baptized and become members of the Bethel Regular Baptist Church.  I added that if they could give full and satisfactory evidence of the hope that was in them, I was ready and willing to baptize.  But I would wish all to understand, that the Baptists alone were by us considered a gospel church, and therefore they received none into their fellowship or communion, except on public profession of their faith in Christ, according to the doctrine of His grace. . . No probationers of six months, no infants who were sprinkled on the profession of their parents, nor any others but believers in Jesus Christ were received.  Therefore, all who joined this church must renounce alliance with all other denominations.  They should treat all men friendly as men, but have no communion or fellowship with any but the Baptist Church of Christ; for they should look upon all others as the daughters of mystic Babylon.  ’I have been thus particular, as I wish to deceive no one,’ said I.  ‘We wish to be understood to say, as did the Lord in reference to this “Mystery, Babylon” (if any of God’s people be ensnared by her), Come out of her my people, and be ye separated from her.”  Wilson Thompson

(Wilson Thompson (1788-1866) was a Regular Baptist preacher in Illinois.    The above quote is from pages 152-154 of “The Autobiography of Elder Wilson Thompson” published in 1867.  The time period for the quote is during the War of 1812.   Thompson like the majority of Baptists during that time believed that the Baptists alone were the only true church and that Baptists should not have any alliances with other denominations.   Because Thompson identified with the Primitive Baptists after the missions controversy (circa 1830) most Southern and Missionary Baptist historians have missed this source.  A special thanks to my good friend R. L. Vaughn of Texas for pointing it out to me.  He has an excellent website – Ministry and Music – Seeking the Old Paths

This was first posted at All Things Baptists June 30, 2007.

-T.A.